L.A. Edgy Amid Highway Shootings

A string of highway shootings since mid-March has left four people dead in Southern California and raised fears of a return to the bad old days of the 1980s, when the Los Angeles area gained a reputation for freeway gunplay.

Authorities have increased freeway patrols and considered installing recorders on roadside traffic cameras.

Five people have been shot in their cars in apparently unrelated — and definitely unsolved — attacks. In at least three cases, the shooters were in other cars.

"Driving behavior has changed tremendously with all the congestion here. That causes people to be extremely short-tempered and inconsiderate," he said. "The courtesy we used to extend often isn't there anymore."